I have a tendency to overbuy ingredients sometimes. In this case, I bought an extra rotisserie chicken when I made the pineapple chicken salad for Andrew’s birthday party. And because that version was so delicious, and because I was itching to make some more honey wheat sandwich buns, I thought more chicken salad would be just the right thing. So I looked back through my recipes marked to try and this one immediately jumped out at me. This is a fantastic variation on chicken salad. I loved the little spots of sweetness provided by the dried cranberries, and the chopped pecans really added a depth of flavor. Though I normally don’t love celery, I think it’s flavor is barely noticeable in chicken salad but it does contribute a delicious crunch to the texture.

One great thing about this recipe is how quick it was to prepare. I think it took me all of 15 minutes to prep and mix up a batch. I substituted half of the mayo from the original recipe with plain yogurt to cut the mayo taste, and I thought the balance was just right. I gave it a quick taste-test immediately after mixing and felt it was slightly bland and needed a little something extra. I threw in a bit more shallot and that really seemed to do the trick. You could certainly use pre-chopped pecans from the store, but I prefer to buy pecan halves and chop them myself because (1) I LOVE using my chef’s knife, and (2) I think the pre-chopped pecan pieces are too small for my taste, and I like being able to control the size of the pieces myself. All in all, this made for several days of very tasty lunches for us. Yum!

Directions

Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl. Mix well until thoroughly combined. Adjust shallot and seasonings to taste. Transfer to an air-tight container and refrigerate for 30 minutes or more to allow flavors to meld. Serve.